From the very opening of the 85th Academy Awards Ceremony, when host for the evening Seth MacFarlane announced “Music in Film” as being the Oscar theme of the night, it promised to be a night of great musical performances. The creme de la creme of the film industry came together at the Dolby Theatre, at the famous Hollywood and Highland address in Los Angeles, on Sunday in eager anticipation of what the night would bring. Rumours had been circling throughout Hollywood in the months prior as to the possible performers of the night, including much anticipated performances from Adele, Barbra Streisand and Jennifer Hudson, as well as a medley from the talented cast of Les Miserables.

Audience members and viewers alike were treated to musical interludes including Barbra Streisand honouring the late Marvin Hamlisch with The Way We Were and Dame Shirley Bassey helping to commemorate the 50 years of the James Bond franchise with her outstanding rendition of Goldfinger. A goosebump-inducing performance from powerhouse Jennifer Hudson was followed by the cast of Les Miserables providing further musical entertainment on the night.

Another much anticipated performance of the evening, and one who had been hotly tipped to go home with an Oscar herself, Adele arrived wearing a black gown by fellow British designer, Jenny Packham.  Indeed it was Adele’s performance of her hit Skyfall from the 23rd Bond movie of the same name that was the ultimate showstopper of the night. Winner of the Best Female Actor Award, Jennifer Lawrence, did the introductions as the 24 year old Tottenham native took to the stage and wowed those in the audience as well as the estimated one billion tuning in around the world.

Adele, who wrote both the music and lyrics together with her co-writer/producer Paul Epworth, went on to win the Best Original Song statuette for Skyfall from the James Bond film. Remarkably the film itself was noticeably ignored by the Academy in the Best Picture category nominations.

It has been an incredibly remarkable last couple of years for Adele, whose second album 21 won her six Grammy Awards last year, including the highly coveted Best Album of the Year, two BRIT Awards and three American Music Awards. This particular award season has seen Adele go on to win the Golden Globe for Best Original song for Skyfall as well as being the recipient of Best Solo Pop Performance at the most recent Grammy Awards also held in Los Angeles just 2 weeks ago. Adele recently confessed recording Skyfall was “one of the proudest moments of my life.”